THIS season may have been a poor one for Basingstoke, but wing Karl Buttle is confident that the future is bright.

The form of 19-year-old Buttle has been a major plus for 'Stoke throughout a disappointing campaign - the wing terrifying defences throughout London division one with his electric pace, solid handling and evasive running.

He is one of a number of young players who have burst into the first team and he feels that this will stand the club in good stead despite the team's relegation.

"We will have a good team in a few years, as long as everyone stays playing," Buttle said. "We have all learned from this season and have become better players as a result.

"Although we've been relegated, I would hope that we would be able to get back into London one soon and start again."

The first-team squad have been left shaken by the news that director of rugby Jim Dixon is to leave the club at the end of the season and Buttle admits that he will be sad to see the New Zealander go.

"It is a big disappointment that Jim is leaving because he has done very well developing young players like myself," the winger added.

"He gave a lot of the younger players a chance to step up to the first team. We proved him right by coping when we got there and will miss him."

The departure of Dixon, coupled with the club's relegation, might lead to some players to consider their future at Down Grange. Buttle admits that he is not completely sure where he will be playing next season, but he thinks that the majority of the squad will remain.

"I think that all of the key players will stay because it is a great place to play rugby," he said. "There might be a few players who leave, though I'm not really sure.

"Personally, I will wait and see what happens in the summer, but I will probably stay."

Everybody at the club will be hoping that Buttle does choose to continue his career at Basingstoke as he has been so successful in his first season as a fixture in the first team.

He has scored eight tries, making him the club's second-highest scorer after the ever-impressive Simon Appleby, and he has enjoyed his rugby despite the poor results.

"I have enjoyed playing, but it has been a bit disappointing that we have not picked up a few more victories," he said.

"I wanted to get more tries than I did last year. That was my only target and I have achieved it, which is great.

"I was not expecting to play as much as I have, but there is not very much competition on the wing. I have done well though and been lucky not to pick up any serious injuries.

"I would like to think that I have improved over the season. I have got a bit more experience and am getting more used to playing at a higher level.

"There is a big gap between youth and adult rugby and it can be difficult to get used to how physical it is."

Buttle is not completely sure why the team have failed to get results this season, but he would like to see more players regularly attending training.

"One thing that could improve is the amount of people at training," he said. "We have been short sometimes and that is something that has let us down.

"I am not sure what has gone wrong, but we have not had any consistency of players. We have rarely had the same team two weeks running.

"I don't think we have enough strength in depth either. Maybe we could do with a scout or someone going around, looking at players and getting them involved, even if they just come to training.

"It is nothing the team has done - it's just the way things have turned out with players getting injured."